Space Exploration: Sixth semi-annual amateur railgun competition to be held on the coastline of an...

...ocean where all projectiles are safely fired over it. This competition must be held at night but can be held anywhere in the world that has an ocean coastline. To win this challenge, all six semi-annual competitions must have at least ten separately-owned and independent electro-magnetic repulsion railguns compete against each other. The competitions must also be six months apart and open to all competitors, including private citizens and from foreign countries. All projectiles must be highly incandescence or luminescence during their entire flight, brightly detonate after they have passed the apex of their launch, and the explosion must be loud enough to be heard back at the launch point. [This is why these competitions must be held at night so spectators can easily and enjoyably watch their launches.] If the projectile reaches orbit, it must have a rocket or explosive that will send it back to Earth and an explosive which will then detonate upon reentry.

6) First to build a privately-funded lunar space elevator. [Due to the Moon’s low gravity, reinforced steel can be used for the lunar elevator’s cable, but likely it will use carbon nanotubes. Using carbon nanotubes for the lunar space elevator is pretty much engineering overkill, but, in addition to making the lunar space elevator that much more safe, it will help test out the elevator construction process for when nanotubes are used to make Earth space elevators. Carbon nanotubes are currently the only known material strong enough to reach from Earth geostationary orbit to the Earth's surface without snapping.]

7) First 23,000-mile-long carbon nanotube cable. [“Only” 22,236 miles of cable is needed for an Earth space elevator. The extra 764 miles is to give the space elevator a safety margin.]

11) Be used to create the first privately-funded Earth/space elevator built with material sent by an Earth accelerator and/or a lunar space elevator accelerator.

Using electro-magnetic repulsion acceleration on a privately-funded Earth space elevator:

12) First 10,000-megawatt solar-power satellite sent to orbit, and assembled there, that beams its energy to the Earth space elevator and lunar space elevator, which transmits the energy down zero-resistance transmission lines to power grids on the surfaces of both celestial bodies.

13) First object to be sent to and safely caught and decelerated by a lunar space elevator and then sent back to Earth by a lunar space elevator’s accelerator and safely caught and decelerated by Earth’s space elevator.

14) First chimpanzee to be sent to and safely caught and decelerated by a lunar space elevator and then sent back to Earth by a lunar space elevator’s accelerator and safely caught and decelerated by Earth’s space elevator.

15) First human to be sent to and safely caught and decelerated by a lunar space elevator and then sent back to Earth by a lunar space elevator’s accelerator and safely caught and decelerated by Earth’s space elevator.

16) First human of the opposite sex to be sent to and safely caught and decelerated by a lunar space elevator and then sent back to Earth by a lunar space elevator’s accelerator and safely caught and decelerated by Earth’s space elevator.

17) First object to hit Mars. [The Earth-based space elevator used for this future challenge might have its cable extended out well beyond its geostationary point to increase the distance and time Mars-destined objects can be accelerated. Centrifugal force will keep the cable extension straight. The cable extension will also likely replace the counter-weight needed by that space elevator with the two cable extensions balancing each other out.]

18) First object to hit Mars within one week (6 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes, and 59 seconds or less).

19) First object to go into stable orbit around Mars.

20) First privately-funded Martian space elevator.

21) First 100-megawatt solar-power satellite in orbit around Mars that beams its energy to the Martian space elevator, which transmits it down zero-resistance transmission lines to a power grid on the Martian’s surface.

22) First object to be sent to and safely caught and decelerated by a Martian space elevator.

23) First object to be sent to and safely caught and decelerated by a Martian space elevator and then sent back by the Martian space elevator and safely caught and decelerated by the Earth space elevator.

24) First human to be sent to and safely caught and decelerated by a Martian space elevator and then sent back to Earth by the Martian space elevator’s accelerator and safely caught and decelerated by Earth’s space elevator.

25) First human of the opposite sex to be sent to and safely caught and decelerated by a Martian space elevator and then sent back to Earth by the Martian space elevator’s accelerator and safely caught and decelerated by Earth’s space elevator.

26) First convicted felon to be exiled to Mars. [Which would be FAR better than executing them, imprisoning them for life, or even for decades. If given the option, most convicted criminals would rather get a new (though rough) start on life than becoming Bruno's cellmate bitch.]

27) Same as FC #25 but first country to exile 100 convicted felons to Mars.

28) Same as FC #25 but first country to exile all its convicted felons and close down all its medium-security, maximum, and super-max prisons.

29) First robo-miners sent to an iron asteroid in the Asteroid Belt. The robo-miners use their own electro-magnetic repulsion accelerator to send the ore they mine to the Earth space elevator: these shipments are safely caught by Earth’s space elevator.

30) First robo-miners sent to an asteroid in the Asteroid Belt to mine for gold.